The Governor of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands was the colonial head of the

Gilbert and Ellice Islands The Gilbert and Ellice Islands (GEIC as a colony) in the Pacific Ocean was part of the British Empire from 1892 to 1976. It was a British protectorate, protectorate from 1892 to 12 January 1916, and then a crown colony, colony until 1 January 1 ...

civil service from 1892 until 1979. The post was established in 1892 with the title 'Resident Commissioner' by

Governor of Fiji Fiji was a British Crown colony from 1874 to 1970, and an independent dominion in the Commonwealth from 1970 to 1987. During this period, the head of state was the British monarch, but in practice the functions of the crown were normally exercis ...

John Bates Thurston Sir John Bates Thurston (31 January 1836 – 7 February 1897) was a British colonial official who served Fiji in a variety of capacities, including Premier of the Kingdom of Viti (before the islands were ceded to the United Kingdom) and lat ...

after the islands were made a

British protectorate British protectorates were protectorates under the jurisdiction of the British government. Many territories which became British protectorates already had local rulers with whom the Crown negotiated through treaty, acknowledging their status wh ...

, having previously been under the supervision of the

High Commissioner for the Western Pacific The high commissioner for the Western Pacific was the chief executive officer of the British Western Pacific Territories, a United Kingdom, British British Empire, colonial entity, which existed from 1877 until 1976. Numerous colonial possessions ...

.David P. Henige (1970) ''Colonial governors from the Fifteenth Century to the Present'', p119Barrie Macdonald (1971) ''Policy and Practice in an Atoll Territory: British Rule in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, 1892-1970'', Canberra, ANU The Commissioner initially had jurisdiction over only the Ellice Islands.

Charles Richard Swayne Charles Richard Swayne (1843–1921), born in Dublin, was the first Resident Commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands protectorate, from 1892 to 1895. Swayne had spent more than 20 years as a Magistrate at Lomaloma and then in Lau in F ...

was appointed as the first Commissioner, arriving in the islands the same year. In 1893 the responsibilities of Resident were extended to cover the

Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands (;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this name applied o ...

, with the title becoming Resident Commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. Swayne arrived in the islands in October 1893. His salary was £500 a year, which was covered by local revenue. In 1895, the headquarters of the protectorate were established in

Tarawa Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

Ocean Island in 1908, which remained the headquarters until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the Japanese occupation of the Gilbert Islands. At the beginning of the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

, Cyril George Fox Cartwright was acting Resident Commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony on Ocean Island from December 1941 to August 1942. He was acting on behalf of Vivian Fox-Strangways, who had been appointed as Resident Commissioner, but because of the Pacific War, Fox-Strangways had been seconded into the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

with the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

and was located on

Tulagi Tulagi, less commonly known as Tulaghi, is a small island in Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Ngella Sule. The town of the same name on the island (pop. 1,750) was the capital of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate from 1896 t ...

in the

British Solomon Islands The British Solomon Islands Protectorate was first established in June 1893, when Captain Herbert Gibson of declared the southern Solomon Islands a British protectorate.''Commonwealth and Colonial Law'' by Kenneth Roberts-Wray, London, S ...

. Following the occupation of Ocean Island by the Japanese forces on 26 August 1942, Fox-Strangways established his office and headquarters on

Funafuti Funafuti is an atoll, comprising numerous islets, that serves as the capital of Tuvalu. As of the 2017 census, it has a population of 6,320 people. More people live in Funafuti than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with it containing approximately 6 ...

in the Ellice Islands. On 22 November 1943 Fox-Strangways landed on Betio islet at the end of

Battle of Tarawa The Battle of Tarawa was fought on 20–23 November 1943 between the United States and Japan on Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands, and was part of Operation Galvanic, the U.S. invasion of the Gilberts. Nearly 6,400 Japanese, Koreans, and Am ...

, and began to establish the administrative centre of the colony on Tarawa, first on Betio islet and subsequently on

Bairiki Bairiki is a town located in South Tarawa, Kiribati. It is crucial to the country's political and administrative structure as several governmental organizations and diplomatic missions are situated there. Landmarks The State House, a building ...

islet. The provisional headquarters of the colony stayed in Funafuti until 1946 and the rebuilding of Tarawa. The Gilbert Islands and Ellice Islands became separate colonies in 1976, but remained under a single governor. After the independence of

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

(Ellice Islands) in 1978, the post was renamed the Governor of the Gilbert Islands until the independence of

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

the following year.

List of governors

References

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